Monday, December 26, 2011

a Framboise Manor Christmas!



first off - i hope that every one of you had a Christmas Day as wonderful as ours! the pic above is our Christmas tree - beautiful isn't it? we have so many beautiful trees on our land that it was hard to pick just one. and since they all come already decorated in tinsel, you have to be really selective! that's why we chose this group of 3 trees! we can see them from the kitchen window. we love that group of trees!

anyway - what an awesome Christmas Day we had! we were invited to our friends' C and B's house. we arrived at noon, were greeted at the door with hugs from our friends and their two children (18 and 19). the whole house smelled divine! we brought some home-made dinner rolls, some cranberry-ginger-pear sauce and some cranberry-walnut-oatmeal cookies. we also brought a 40 of rhum for C and B (people around here like their alcohol!). for their daughter, who loves butterflies, i dug through some of my jewelry and found a beautiful silver butterfly necklace that she just loved! i also gave her a really cool butterfly belt.

we found out last week that their son had busted his i-pod. jambaloney had recently done the same thing and because he is so good with computers and electronic stuff, he was able to find a kit on ebay to fix it. so their son got a home-made coupon from jamie to pay for the kit and then fix the i-pod when the kit arrives. he was over the moon and told everyone about it! his parents were pleased that we brought their children some little gifts that weren't store-bought and meant something to each of them. they have really sweet kids and we like them alot!

now on to the food! oh my oh my! C and B put on a spread like nobody's business. a 20lb turkey cooked to perfection, stuffing, gravey, potatoes, turnips, carrots, corn and two kinds of cheesecake! then all kinds of snacks for the rest of the day and evening. jambaloney is still stuffed to the gills! i ate a ton too - try four servings of mashed potatoes and gravey! i love mashed potatoes and gravey!

C and B got jambaloney a fancy flashlight for his key-chain --- something i have been telling him he needs forever! and they got me my brand of red wine and a box of expensive chocolates. no one here drinks wine - only me - they all think it is kind of funny! so she found out from our other friends what the name of my wine was so that she could get it for me - sooo awesome!

different people dropped in throughout the day - C's nephew, wife and baby, B's sister and mother, their daughter's boyfriend. we spent the whole day eating, snacking, talking, drinking tea, sipping wine for me, drinking beer for the rest - we never left the kitchen as the kitchen is the heart of the home here - and the hours just passed. we felt like we were with family and were just so comfortable. and warm. and laughing. and enjoying each others company.

then all of the sudden it was 9pm! we had promised to stop in at B's brother's house which is right next door to B's. we thought it was too late to stop in but B and C insisted that we couldn't leave without stopping by or they would get accused of "hogging" us to themselves. so we all bundled up and trudged through the backyard to D and R's house. thank goodness it is only a quick jaunt across the yard as it was super cold last night!

here's a pic of D's house and super awesome lobster boat. i love that boat!



so we went over to D and R's - their house was full as both of their children were home for the holidays and had brought their babies with them. we could tell that everyone had had a full day, R looked happy but tired, and the babies were going to bed. so we headed out to D's smoke shack - a little shack in the backyard where he goes to smoke when its cold. he's not allowed to smoke in the house. but there is a woodstove out there and many stashed bottles of various alcohol and needless to say a party ensued! D's son and girlfriend, and his daughter and her boyfriend, and C and B and their 2 kids and me and jambaloney all hung out laughing and telling stories until 1am in the morning! we left with C and B but the rest of them stayed and might still be there right now!

we went back to C and B's and they proceeded to fill garbage bags full of leftovers and snacks and forced us to take them home. we hugged them and thanked them and B said that we were now family - which is huge here as they take family very seriously. and they are very humble. i just called C and told her that we really appreciated all of the food and how much fun we had and she replied "Jesus Christ how many effin times do you people gotta thank someone for some dinner?!?!"

ya they curse alot here too. she then went on to say how happy they were to have us and how much fun they had as well.

these people welcomed us into their home, with their children, and shared Christmas Day with us. they made this Christmas very special. it was not about big, fancy gifts or any of that shenanigans - it was about the true spirit of Christmas - family, good food, friendship and love.

what a great way to spring into 2012.

jambaloney and i hope you all had a wonderful Christmas Day. and we wish the best for all of you in the coming year.

20 comments:

  1. All the best my good friends...now, I need to hit the shower.

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  2. Those are the best kinds of get-togethers. I love friends and family that love each other. It also helps to spread the work around for the cooking when people bring awesome things like homemade rolls and cranberry sauce. That sounds like a great time.

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  3. Some of my favorite memories are from time spent in Nova Scotia. Your posts give me a way to vicariously enjoy the simple yet perfect pleasures that one of God's favorite places provides, while I am home in the US most of the time. Thank you both, and Merry Christmas.

    www.rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com

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  4. Hey Guys,

    That clump of beautiful trees are ever so special-
    your own to enjoy all year long ! Your Christmas is what it's all about ... sharing a great meal and good times with wonderful friends. I feel that simple pleasures are the BEST ! I'm happy that you had a awesome time ! :))

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  5. Those pictures are great. There is no snow here and no expectations of any. But, snow makes great pictures. It sounds like you had a busy day and full stomachs and a bottle of wine to yourself. I don't drink beer either.

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  6. Glad you had a good time with friends and great food. All the best guys.

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  7. Thank you so much for making us part of your family. This was a wonderful post. I take it you will be in a food coma for the next few easy?

    I sent you both an email last week, did you miss it? No big deal.

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  8. Love your trees and your celebration with your new found family! Sounds like a place I would like to be!

    Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

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  9. Thanks for sharing you day. Merry Christmas and Happy New Years to you both. :)

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  10. Having an 8 year old adds to the excitement level at our place. I think we have maybe one more year of Santa-belief.

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  11. Sounds like you had a wonderful Christmas!!! :) Love your tree(s),by the way!

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  12. Stephen, dear friend, all the best to you and yours too. hope you had that shower - nobody likes a smelly Papa - bahahahahah!

    45er - i feel the same way - nothing is better than friends and family coming together and feeling loved. and we always try to bring something if we are invited somewhere - it's just good manners, right?

    JaneofVirginia - i have checked out your blog and recommend it to any preparedness-minded folk here. i am glad that you have such fond memories of my province...thank you for that!

    thanks Helga! i hope that you and yours had a lovely Christmas too! and yes - simple really is best!

    PracticalP - i did drink the whole bottle over the course of the day/night but would have been only too happy to share it with you!

    PioneerP- thanks buddy! all the best to you and yours too!

    Rob - thank you for making us part of your family too. and yes - we will be in a food coma for a few more days as we have been eating leftovers the past 2 days!!! and we are going to a buffet supper at our other friends house tomorrow evening. and i am sure that there will be a ton of food there as well!

    as for the email - we haven't really been checking. i'll go and check now. sorry about that!

    Mama Bear - you would fit right in here and love it!

    Tango - right back at you buddy!

    Mr. Smythe - it was a good day indeed!

    Russell - i am sure that having a young child around makes for much merriment and exciting times! i am glad they still believe in Santa!

    Donna - it was wonderful! and i am glad that you love the tree(s) too!

    thanks to all of you for stopping by! we wish you all the best in 2012!

    your friends,
    kymber and jambaloney

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  13. Now there was me thinking that the true meaning behind Christmas getting new bling an caps!

    Glad you have a wonderful time buddy.

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  14. Now that sounds like the perfect Christmas, sharing it with friends and family. That's what it's all about.

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  15. I'm so happy to hear that you guys had such a wonderful Christmas! Sorry I haven't been by lately but it seems sometimes there isn't enough time in the day to get everything done. Sounds like you guys have been pretty busy yourselves! Happy New Year!! I hope it is as wonderful as your Christmas was.

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  16. awww Joey - you know the true meaning of Christmas! i was thrilled that you shared your daughter's card to her sister - that was so touching! thanks for always stopping in buddy - you don't know hwo i much i appreciate it!

    Duke - you got it, Sir. always the true gentleman you are. thank you!

    SciFi- no probs honey...stop by when you can! i am sitting here still giggling about you giggling about me milking a goat...as well as giggling about you milking one. oh 2012 is going to be so awesome, my friend! i can't wait!

    thanks to all of you for stopping by and sharing our wonderful Christmas Day with us...it really means a lot to us.

    and Happy New Year to all of you!

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  17. "Jesus Christ how many effin times do you people gotta thank someone for some dinner?!?!"

    I like her. I really like her. ~Mary

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  18. Mary - i have read through some of your blog posts and i think that i can say, unequivocally, that you would definitely like C. and she you. and i like you too!

    thanks for stopping by!

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  19. This sounds amazing. Practically idyllic. A great Christmas story. :)

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